The Darkest Arc
by Falcyon
Summary: Jaune suffers a blow to the head while his Aura levels are at zero. After waking up from being knocked out , he has changed. No longer is he the carefree goofball. Jaune is now a cold, heartless monster out for blood. How will this affect his team? Who will suffer under his wrath? Rated M for strong language and certain themes in later chapters.


**Hi all! It's -Falcyon- again with something you may or may not have been expecting, depending on whether or not you've seen my escapades on /r/RWBY. I challenged /u/CFCkyle (Fiora Scarlet on FF, check out his stuff) to write a fluffy fic while I write a dark fic. The classic role-reversal bet. So yeah… This is a bit different from what you may be used to from me, but I am really looking forward to this. It's kind of cathartic to write. Kind of.**

**Big thanks to The Draigg for editing and overall fuckery.**

**RWBY is owned by Roosterteth, etc. etc. etc.**

**Let's start this trainwreck of emotions!**

* * *

><p>The Darkest Arc<p>

CHAPTER 1

Jaune Arc was having a bad day. The first sign that today was going to be especially bad was that he'd had a nightmare about all his friends dying. Pyrrha, Ren, Nora, RWBY, his family, all swept away by a forceful blast of incredible energy. He had woken up in a cold sweat and promptly fell out of his bed. Not exactly what he would have called a "great start."

Then in the breakfast line, he tripped over his shoelace and landed face-first in his oatmeal (the cafeteria was out of pancakes). He grumbled as he sat down, wiping chunks of oats off his face.

"You okay," asked a concerned Pyrrha. She was watching him carefully.

"Oh, just fine," Jaune grumbled.

"Don't worry Jaune," Nora said. "Today is the day we get to try sparring against each other!"

"Woo…"

Oh c'mon, Jaune, cheer up," Pyrrha said happily. "You'll be fighting me, so it'll be just like training! Don't worry about it.

Jaune perked up. Pyrrha always knew how to motivate him.

"Okay," he said, a little surer of himself. "Let's see how the rest of the day goes!"

It didn't go so well. Jaune had a rough start to History class. Someone had slipped more espresso into Oobleck's coffee and the professor was now zooming around the room even faster than he was before, speaking at light speed. It was impossible to keep notes. Then came Grimm Studies. Professor Port told another one of his adventures, which ate away at the majority of the class time, until he called on, you guessed it, our blonde knight.

"Mr. Arc," Port shouted exuberantly, "Would you care to explain the three mistakes I made as a young Hunter-in-training?"

"I…," Jaune stammered, "I – I – I wasn't paying attention. I'm sorry sir." He hung his head dejectedly.

Port made a _humph_ noise. "At least you're honest. You really should pay attention to my stories, young man. I have the experience because I made mistakes as a fresh-faced adventurer. I want you all to learn from what I did wrong so you can avoid the same trouble I had." Port turned back to the class and called on another student.

Jaune was having a bad day. A shitty day. There was no possible way this could get worse. If he could just make it through combat class after lunch, he could go back to his room and forget about today.

Professor Goodwitch looked up from her Scroll. "Okay class, today we are going to be splitting you up into groups. Form up with your partners and you will be called down one by one."

Jaune relaxed. Maybe he could get some sleep before his match.

"Mr. Arc and Miss Nikos, would you two like to start us off?"

Jaune groaned. Of course he and Pyrrha were first. He jogged to the locker room and changed into his usual jeans, black sweatshirt, and white armor. He awkwardly strapped Crocea Mors to his belt as he walked out into the arena. Pyrrha was already waiting for him in her leather and gold armor. How did she manage to change so fast? They both took battle stances as Goodwitch finished preparations.

"GO JAUNE," Nora, Ruby , and Yang yelled, giving Jaune an enormous confidence boost. Maybe, just maybe, he could hold off Pyrrha's attacks for long enough that he wouldn't be beaten in the first thirty seconds.

"You may begin," Goodwitch announced.

Jaune immediately started walking to his side, hoping to get Pyrrha to go along with him. She obliged and they started a sort of ritualistic combat dance. Both circled the ring in a clockwise motion, slowly drifting ever closer to each other.

Pyrrha launched her first attack, sweeping Milo in sword form across the floor at an impossible velocity. Jaune managed to just barely notice her move and leapt in the air to avoid it. He lashed his foot out and kicked Milo straight down, embedding it in the floor. Pyrrha looked surprised. She hadn't expected Jaune to adapt so quickly to the situation. She bashed his chest plate with Akouo, sending him flying backward as she tried to collect her wits. Jaune recovered quickly before trying something incredibly stupid. He collapsed his shield back into its scabbard form, grabbed one end, and swung it like he would his sword. It clanged loudly off Akouo, which Pyrrha raised just in time to block. She pounced forward, taking an offensive approach with her shield. Jaune used Crocea Mors and its scabbard as bats, attempting to match her ferocity. As Jaune's luck would have it, his sweaty bangs got in his eyes and he had to back away quickly, trying to wipe the hair out of his vision.

Pyrrha jumped back and threw her shield. Jaune just barely managed to avoid it as it whistled past his head. He charged forward once again and ripped Milo out of the ground. Pyrrha dodged to the right to avoid his dual strikes with her weapons. Akouo was still making its return trip. Pyrrha looked up as she attempted to catch it, using her Semblance to get it to curve toward her. What she didn't realize was that Jaune got between her and the returning shield as he went in for a final strike.

**_CRACK!_**

Jaune crumpled to the ground as Akouo clattered to the floor.

"JAUNE," Pyrrha screamed.

Jaune blacked out.

* * *

><p>A week passed. Jaune was still in the infirmary from the blow to the head. Pyrrha had blamed herself for everything that happened and could be seen every day without fail sobbing next to Jaune's bed, holding his hand.<p>

Today Teams RWBY and NPR were sitting around Jaune celebrating Ruby's 16th birthday. The mood hanging in the air was a mixture of happiness and sorrow, like thick and confusing smog. Ruby was about to cut into her birthday cake when Jaune suddenly coughed.

Everyone jumped. Ruby dropped the knife and it landed with a loud clang. Pyrrha shrieked.

"Ugh…" Jaune groaned, opening his eyes.

Pyrrha threw her arms around him, bursting into tears.

"Oh my god," she said through sobs. "You're alright!"

"Get off me," came a voice. Pyrrha jumped back in shock.

Jaune was awake. He wore a scowl and his usually cheerful eyes had lost their gleam and had taken on a cold, steely look.

"Why the fuck are you all staring at me," Jaune said in a voice that seemed like his, but slightly different. It was mostly due to his new demeanor. "And stop crowding the bed, I'm suffocating from it all."

"J-Jaune," Pyrrha asked with a shaky voice. "A-are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he said with a hint of anger.

"You're… different," Ruby cut in, always the observant one.

Jaune grumbled. "So why am I here? The last thing I remember is fighting Pyrrha and then blackness."

"Wait," Pyrrha interrupted, "You remember who we are?"

"Of course. It's not amnesia we're dealing with here. I'm Jaune Arc, you're Pyrrha Nikos, there's Ren and Nora, then Team RWBY."

Pyrrha sighed with relief. "Okay, so your mood might just be due the meds wearing off.

"My fucking mood- You know what, never mind, I do feel different."

"Your Aura completely depleted during our fight. I don't know how. Then you tried to finish me off and I accidentally hit you with Akouo. I'm so sorry!"

Jaune studied her. Even though he was laying in the bed, he seemed to tower over everyone in the room. The group took a collective step back.

"So it was your fault I'm here?" It came as a quiet whisper, but powerful. It sent a powerful shiver through Pyrrha.

"L-like I said," Pyrrha stuttered. She had lost all sense of upstanding. She was an emotional wreck. "I am completely to blame. I'll to anything to make it up to you."

Jaune sat up. "Are you trying to seduce me? What the fuck, Pyrrha?"

Pyrrha looked embarrassed and miserable. "Wh-what? No! No! I just want you to be happy! I was just saying if there is anything I can do, anything at all, to help you through this, I'm here for you. As a PARTNER."

"Oh good," Jaune said. "You've been throwing yourself all over me the past two semesters, I thought you were going to jump me right here."

Pyrrha sank to the ground, Nora running over to comfort her. Weiss took this opportunity to speak to Jaune. "You're not going to continue to try to court me, right? That fiasco was just awkward for everyone."

"That was the old me," Jaune said. "I have no intention of getting between you and Ruby."

Weiss snorted. Her and Ruby?! As if! But then again, her partner _had_ matured significantly over the course of the school year, not to mention her body was developing quite nicely-

"I-I have no idea what you're talking about," she cried indignantly. Ruby went up to pat her on the back. Weiss sighed and sat down in one of the chairs the nurse had set up for them.

"What the hell, Jaune," Yang said. "Why are you suddenly a dick to everyone?"

"If I had to guess, it has something to do with the shield that smashes into my head. Isn't that right, Pyrrha," Jaune spat. He raised the sheets and stood up. "I'm going to get ready for the day. Leave."

The group left, taking the balloons and birthday celebration supplies with them, but Ruby left him a slice of cake.

_The fuck is wrong with them? I'm not the same anymore. I thought they understood that. God, they're all so annoying. _Jaune unceremoniously dumped the cake in the trash.

He got dressed and faked a smile as he waved toward the nurse's office and left.

As he headed to class, he heard a snicker behind him. Jaune whipped around.

"Heeeey Jaune-y boy," Cardin Winchester said with a smirk. He and his team were standing around Jaune in a half circle. They were looking to pick a fight.

"Fuck off, Winchester," Jaune growled. He was already in a bad mood. He certainly didn't want these chucklefucks to make it worse.

Cardin mockingly gasped. "Oh my, it appears after being knocked into a coma by his whore girlfriend, Jaune woke up with an insatiable desire to fight back against me! Hahahaha-!"

Jaune glared at Cardin as his temper and Aura flared. He was surrounded in glowing white fire as he stepped toward Cardin. "You seem to have forgotten what I said in Forever Fall forest. DON'T FUCK WITH ME!"

Jaune threw out an Aura infused right hook, knocking Cardin to the ground. Cardin screamed through the pain. Sky ran over to him to help. "Dude, you shattered his jaw! What the hell!?"

Jaune kicked him in the face, breaking Sky's nose. Russell Thrush and Dove Bronzewing quickly grabbed their incapacitated friends and carried them off to the infirmary. "YOU TELL ANYONE AND YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD," Jaune threatened as they fled down the hall.

He extinguished his Aura and resumed walking. He would be late to Professor Peach's class, but he didn't really mind. What good was natural history to a hunter?

* * *

><p>Two months passed. Jaune slowly returned to his normal self, much to the joy of his teammates. In truth, however, it was just an act to get them to not ask too many questions. It wasn't making his anger any better, but if he was able to gain their respect, maybe they could be valuable pawns later on down the line.<p>

Jaune collapsed on his bunk. It was night time and he needed the rest. He was exhausted from training with Pyrrha. Not to mention Nora was keeping him up.

"Hey Jaune," she said with her usual bundle of energy. _God, that's annoying._ "What was it like to be in a coma?"

"Nora, could you please try to be quiet?"

Nora paused for a second, before resuming, pasting a huge embarrassed smile across her face. "Sorry, you can kind of blame Ren for that. He's quiet so I have to speak for both of us! I'm sorry, did I pry too much? I'll stop now." She bounded over to her bed and fell onto it, putting on her headphones.

_Fucking bitch… I should get rid of her. No… that would be too obvious. I'll get rid of Ren. He's quiet enough that he could be a possible candidate for… YES! That ought to knock her down a few pegs._

Jaune, not at all surprised by the thought, started to plan out how he was going to achieve such a goal. By midnight, he had the perfect plan.

He nudged Ren. "Hey man, I need to talk to you.

Ren was up quickly. He was used to being able to be completely ready for class in five minutes flat. He and Jaune walked to the roof. Ren knew something was wrong the minute Jaune blocked the door with his own body. Luckily, he came prepared. Ren was the least fooled by Jaune's act. He had known there was something still different about the blonde knight. Ren pulled his trademark Stormflower pistols from his sleeves before taking a fighting stance. Jaune said nothing as he activated his Aura, forming a barrier around himself. Ren was about to pull the trigger when he felt Jaune's hand grab his arm and pull his weapons toward his neck.

"Jaune," Ren gasped as he fought against Jaune's newfound strength, "You don't need to do this."

"Yes I do," Jaune said simply. He twisted his mouth into a nasty grin and doubled his efforts. "Nora has become a bit of a bother. I want to see what happens to her after you commit suicide."

"S-suicide?"

"Yes, suicide. You've obviously noticed I'm using my Aura. Don't worry, I won't make a mess. Well, I mean, not on myself, anyway."

Ren finally understood. Jaune had a ridiculous amount of Aura. He was going to use it to shield his own body so the death couldn't be traced back to anyone but Ren. If he was now able to control it, he could in theory achieve such a feat. Nothing like that had ever been recorded before, but Jaune's enormous Aura stores were quite the force to be reckoned with. He could in theory pull it off.

"I-if you lay a f-finger on N-n-nora, I swear to god-"

"You'll haunt me, right? I'll toy with her, but I won't damage her. You're doing that by yourself."

"F-fuck you, Arc."

"Likewise," Jaune whispered as he was finally able to overpower the lotus boy, slitting his throat. The rooftop was instantly stained a brilliant scarlet. Blood spilled out of the opening in Ren's neck and he collapsed to the ground, wheezing as he tried to get air in his lungs. His blood seeped into his mouth and he started choking on it.

"I-I-I," Ren managed to gargle through the blood filling up his mouth and lungs.

"See ya later, Ren," came Jaune's reply. It sounded eerily like how he would talk when adamantly discussing plans for the weekend with friends. Cheerful and without a care in the world. He smiled and used his Aura to get rid of any blood on his pajamas. Without skipping a beat, he walked back to his dorm, his sloppy grin firmly fixed on his face.

* * *

><p>Ren's body was found the next day by a janitor. A somber mood fell over the entire school as the rumors started to fly. <em>Ren? The quiet boy from Team JNPR? Why would he commit suicide?<em>

Team JNP reacted in different levels. Pyrrha was shocked to say the least. She requested a few days off to cope. This was, of course, granted. Jaune faked surprise, but asked to _stay_ in class because it was his "duty as a leader to show strength no matter what." And finally, Nora…

Poor Nora. When she got the news she swayed on her feet for a few minutes, trying to fully comprehend what she was hearing. _Ren is dead?_ Without saying a word, she slowly walked to the bathroom and slammed the door before locking it. She sat down on the lip of the bathtub and started to sob uncontrollably. Her best friend, her crush, her REASON TO LIVE had committed suicide. She let herself sink backward into the tub and cried for the rest of the day. She refused to come out to eat or to sleep in her bed.

The police investigation ended a month later, concluding it to be, without a shadow of a doubt, a suicide. JNP had been questioned quite extensively. While Ozpin looked for another student on the waiting list to replace Ren, the mood in their dorm had grown increasingly somber. Nora had completely changed. She had grown her hair out and dyed a streak on her bangs black in remembrance of Ren. On this particular day, Pyrrha had tried to reason with Nora.

"Nora… I understand why you're doing this… it's been tough on all of us, but you shouldn't be beating yourself up over this. Please try to understand…"

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! YOU NEVER WILL," Nora spat out, her voice rich with venom. "I CAN DO WHATEVER THE FUCK I WANT! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!"

She ran out the door, crying. Pyrrha turned back to Jaune, who was putting on a show of looking surprised and upset.

"I'll go after her," Jaune said before standing up.

"Please tread lightly," Pyrrha said quietly as she grabbed his hand. "Nora's a wreck right now. I know you can be great emotional support. Good luck."

"I'll get her back," Jaune said. In truth, he was probably going to toy with her only for a bit longer. He'd enjoyed her descent into madness, but she was becoming a nuisance again. Her bad attitude was getting in the way of his plans. He needed to end her too. Not suicide this time, though. That would get suspicious. Maybe he could frame that Nikos bitch… He stopped for a second as a plan came to mind. _Jealousy is a wonderful thing._

Jaune strolled through Beacon's halls, lost in thought. That's when he saw Nora on the roof of the wing across from the one he was standing in. He made a beeline for her.

Nora started as the rooftop access door opened behind her.

"Nora," Jaune said quietly. "I found you! What are you doing here?"

"I'm going to fucking jump. Don't try and stop me."

Jaune was surprised. He didn't think Nora could ever have that much conviction in her voice when she said those words.

"Wait, Nora," Jaune pleaded. "Can you at least explain to me so I can understand what's going through your mind?"

Nora gave him a dirty look. "You really think that's going to work? You don't understand anything."

"Then _make_ me understand, Nora. Please."

Nora thought for a moment, then sighed in resignation. "_Fine_. But I'm still going through with this after I tell you."

Jaune nodded in agreement. Nora stepped off the ledge back toward the safety of the rooftop. She sat cross-legged on the ground and invited Jaune to sit next to her.

"When I was in my early teens," Nora began, "I-I was… emotionally disturbed. I would lash out at people, alienate my friends, bully kids… Well, you saw how I've been the past month. I've started to regress." She started to cry. "H-how can you be s-so calm? I m-m-miss R-Ren! REEEEENNN!"

Jaune put his arm around her. She sobbed into his shoulder.

"I'm sorry I've been distant, Nora," Jaune said. "I just want to be strong for the rest of the team. That's why I don't want to see another teammate die. Could you imagine how that would make Pyrrha feel? How that would make _me _feel?"

Nora wiped her tears and looked into his eyes. "Y-you really care?"

"More than you've realized this year," Jaune said. Nora gave a distressed, puzzled expression.

"What do you mean?"

"Nora. I have feelings for you. I realize you want to go through with this, but please…" Jaune started to tear up. "Think before you make such a big decision. It's a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Nora…" Jaune suddenly cupped his hands over her shoulders, pulled her back, and stared at her, tears streaming down his cheeks. "I don't _ever_ want to lose you."

Nora was taken aback. _Wait, what? Feelings for me?_

"I-I never knew… Jaune… I'm so sorry."

They embraced tightly. Nora felt Jaune's lips press lightly against her own. She pushed her face back against his in a sudden fiery passion that caused them both to tumble to the ground. Their tears mixed as they shared this special moment. Nora pulled up for air.

"How d'you think Pyrrha will react," she asked with concern.

"I really don't know," Jaune said. He smiled. "All I know is that I can't spend a moment without you in my life. I love you, Nora."

"I love you too, Jaune. I'm sorry."

They kissed again, this time a bit more gently.

Jaune congratulated himself. Now he could proceed to Phase Two of his plan. _Phase Two? What am I, some lame-ass comic book villain?_

* * *

><p>Pyrrha had a hard time comprehending what was happening. In the past week, Nora had gone completely back to normal, cropping her hair back to its normal length and washing the dye out. That wasn't what was bothering Pyrrha, however. What bothered Pyrrha was that Jaune and Nora had just announced at breakfast that they were dating.<p>

"_YOU-" _Pyrrha started to say before choking on her waffle. Jaune clapped her on the back, dislodging the food from her throat.

"Yeah, it just kinda… happened, y'know," Jaune said sheepishly. "I'm sorry I surprised you like that, Pyrrha."

"It's… fine," Pyrrha said, obviously saddened by this newfound knowledge.

"So how long ago did that start," Yang piped up from across the table. "I assume it was around the same time you went back to your bubbly old self, right Nora?"

Nora nodded, smiling wide. "Yeah, Jaune's my big strong hero now! He confessed his love!" She nestled into his arm and made a _squee_ noise. Jaune blushed.

"Y-yeah," he said sheepishly.

"Way to go, lover boy," Yang winked. And kicked his leg under the table. Jaune winced. _Do I have to kill you too?_

"That's great," Ruby piped up. "You two make such a cute couple!"

"Thanks," Nora yelled happily with her head still buried in Jaune's arm.

Weiss looked on as she filed her nails. She though it was good Jaune had gotten Nora as a girlfriend. Now he would stop bothering her about dates and the like.

"Well, It's almost time for class. We'd better get a move on," Pyrrha said coldly. Jaune noticed, but didn't acknowledge it. His plan was working beautifully. He faintly smiled before he grabbed Nora and kissed her hard.

Catcalls erupted from around the cafeteria. Jaune blushed and Nora beamed. Pyrrha looked like she was going to have an aneurysm. She stormed off to class, not waiting for her teammates. Jaune and Nora had to run to catch up with her.

* * *

><p>Pyrrha now spent the majority of her free time avoiding Jaune and Nora, leaving the couple alone in the dorm. On this particular evening, she was in the library furiously paging through a battle manual, trying to learn the battle tactics depicted in the book. Well, not really. She was thinking.<p>

_I can't believe he would do that to me. I realize what he said when he came out of the coma may have been false, maybe due to the head trauma, but REALLY?! Him and Nora? Oh, my blood is boiling. I'm going to give that fucking prick a piece of my mind when I get back. _She slammed the book shut with a loud thud. _Fuck this General Crimson Sera, what kind of leader distracts their enemies by playing mind games or and tricks to distract enemies from the bigger picture-_

Pyrrha froze. MIND GAMES! Jaune was toying with her! It all made perfect sense now! His temper after waking up, the 'cooldown,' Ren's suicide, and Nora's sudden infatuation with him, all an attempt to make Pyrrha jealous! _FUCK YOU, ARC! I WILL MAKE YOU PAY FOR PUTTING ME THROUGH THIS!_

Across the school, Jaune laughed to himself. He was having too much fun with this. He had Nora under his wing and was working on possibly making it to second base soon. Well, he would if he still had time before Pyrrha lost it. He felt a nudge at the back of his brain saying that was exactly what had just happened. He snuggled up behind Nora, hugging her tightly. She giggled and turned around in his strong grip and nestled her head into the crook of his neck.

"So…," Jaune said softly, grabbing her butt firmly, "Pyrrha's probably not getting back till much later… You wanna-"

Nora made an incomprehensible noise and kissed him deeply. Jaune took that as a yes and started massage her back. She giggled again as she pulled away and took her shirt off, revealing her bra. Jaune responded by pulling his shirt off in a single fluid motion, and they resumed in their heated escalation. Just as Nora was fumbling with his belt, Jaune activated his aura over his hand and pulled a misshapen black object out from being tucked into his waistband. Nora was too busy to notice as Jaune activated his Aura over his hands and arms and pulled Milo, Pyrrha's spear, out of the bag. He had stolen it from her locker earlier today. The perfect framing weapon, he thought to himself. Nora pulled his pants off just as the door to the dorm opened.

_Shit!_

Jaune quickly stabbed Milo far into Nora's back and pulled his pants up. He turned to see Pyrrha with a look of pure, unadulterated fury as she stormed up to him, not even bothering to acknowledge Nora, who had collapsed Milo was sticking out of her back at an angle where

"YOU BASTARD!"

Jaune didn't bother to move his face out of the way of Pyrrha's incoming slap. It made a loud noise and Jaune's left cheek was now a mottled red.

"YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT OTHER PEOPLES' FEELINGS AT ALL, DO YOU?! I LOVED YOU! I WAS INFATUATED WITH YOU! FUCK YOU, YOU FUCKING SOCIOPATH!"

"Pyrrha," Jaune began slowly, "I realize how this may look to you, but you have to believe me." He took a deep breath before grinning like a madman. "It's exactly what it looks like."

Pyrrha's face lit up with rage.

"HOW DARE YOU! WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS? YOU'RE NOT THE REAL JAUNE, WHERE IS HE?!"

"Oh, I'm the real deal, alright," Jaune said with a laugh. "In fact I've never felt more alive!"

"You've changed Jaune… Fuck you. Just fuck you. Do you have anything to do with Ren's death?"

"Oh come on, Nikos," Jaune spat. "You really think I'm going to monologue like some movie villain?"

Pyrrha stood there, her worst fears realized. _He's the killer! I can't believe it! I have to tell someone!_

Jaune mumbled something.

Pyrrha turned her attention back to him. "What was that?"

"You didn't acknowledge Nora this whole time. Thank you for that."

"I DON'T GIVE A SHIT ABOUT YOUR LITTLE WHORE, ARC! SHE COULD BE DEAD FOR ALL I CARE!"

"Well, speak of the devil, she should be pretty close by now," Jaune's eyes lit up with a mad glint.

Pyrrha looked down to see Nora lying on the ground, her eyes unfocused. Jaune kicked her over to reveal Milo sticking out of her back to the hilt. Pyrrha almost threw up.

"Jaune…," she said quietly, "What is this?"

Jaune laughed. "It _was_ going to be a setup to get rid of you, but I guess I failed. Oh well. I guess I'll be taking my leave now."

He turned and activated his Aura as he jumped through the window. Glass rained down around him as he fell.

Pyrrha screamed and rushed to Nora's aid. She checked Nora's pulse. _Dead!_ She disregarded Milo as she ran to the window. Jaune had just landed with a thud and took off running, boosting himself with his Aura. He ran through the dark courtyard, illuminating the trees with his Aura's blinding white glow. Shadows danced along the walls of Beacon as he sprinted faster. Pyrrha rushed across to RWBY's dorm just as Ruby opened the door.

"Pyrrha, I heard yelling, is every-"

"CATCH JAUNE! HE KILLED NORA! HE'S GETTING AWAY!"

Ruby took off. She didn't fully know what was happening, but if what Pyrrha said was true, she needed to catch Jaune. Fast. She sped through the doors to the entrance hall and spotted the glow of Jaune's Aura as he ran. Ruby increased her speed, depleting her own Aura faster than she would like. This would be close. Jaune picked up his pace as well. He was heading for the airship docks. Ruby might be able to catch him if she cut across the reflection pond. That was only if she could run fast enough to skim over the water. Ruby veered off the concrete path and rushed at the small pond. She closed her eyes and prayed that she would make it in time.

Ruby fully expected to go under in the first step, but miraculously, she managed to keep herself above the water. She broke out into her maximum speed to stay up. She kicked up a massive rooster tail as she displaced the water in the reflection pond. As her foot made it to dry land, she gained much more traction and winced as the G-forces whipped at her face. She was about to reach Jaune but realized he wasn't stopping. _He's going to jump!_ Ruby redoubled her efforts and tore up the ground beneath her feet.

Jaune suddenly jumped high into the air. Ruby stopped, barely avoiding tumbling off the edge of the dock. Jaune dove toward the lake, which was a good thousand or so feet below. Ruby watched as his Aura flared just as he hit the water before vanishing, leaving the previously illuminated water in pitch black.

Ruby ran back to Beacon to inform Pyrrha. She found Pyrrha and the rest of Team RWBY surrounding the school nurse as she carried Nora's body to the medical wing.

Today marked the beginning of Pyrrha's plot for vengeance. She would do everything in her power to catch Jaune and make sure he stayed behind bars for life. The following day, she dropped out of Beacon, losing her full ride scholarship. With a tearful goodbye, she took an airship to Vale and walked straight into the police station.

"May I help you," the officer behind the desk said as he inspected Pyrrha. The girl was in sweats and a baggy t-shirt. She looked like she hadn't slept in days, which she hadn't. The officer had no idea how right he was.

"I want to enroll in the police academy."

* * *

><p><strong>Whew! First chapter complete! Remember to leave constructive criticism in your review so I know how to improve! As for people who are angered by my fic, I'll have you know I recently dug a moat around my house and filled it with the angriest and horniest bears I could find. Good luck getting around that shit. Anyway, here's a small teaser for Chapter Two!<strong>

* * *

><p>"Physical pain..." Jaune said, cradling Ruby as a lover would. Ruby was crying. "It's a funny thing, really. Your nerves carry the information at the speed of light through your body to the brain, where it is then processed and appropriate responses are triggered. The body can react to physical pain. Psychological pain, however, is an entirely different beast. When you endure such stress on your psyche, <em>you<em> break. Not your bones. What makes you who you are becomes irreparably damaged."

There was silence, save for Ruby quietly sniffling.

"This is what happened to me, Ruby. Do you see what I've become? I'm a psychopath. And you know? I don't really mind. Friendships? Emotional ties to loved ones? Fuck those. You all held me back from becoming skilled, from becoming who I was meant to be. That's why I'm taking my revenge. Don't you see? It's all your fault I'm like this. I killed Ren and Nora. They deserved to die. Everyone got in my way so I will make every LAST. FUCKING. ONE. OF. YOU. PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID!"

He slapped Ruby across the cheek, leaving a red mark. She shrieked from pain and shock.

Jaune chuckled darkly, alarmingly calm again. "You see? It will leave a mark on your skin, but not your soul. Now _THIS_..." He paused and took a small medical syringe filled with a clear green liquid out of his jacket and undid the protective plastic covering the needle. "...is quite the opposite. No wound except for a tiny prick in your arm. The mental trauma you're about to experience, on the other hand... Well, I'll just let you see for yourself."


End file.
